Marketers still aren’t making the most of mobile

London, UK Monday 7th November 2016 – With mobile devices easily overtaking the amount of people there are in the world, it goes without saying how important it is as a channel in consumer marketing to both discover and buy. However, a new UK study from 3radical has shown that brands are still consistently failing to embrace this trend and so many are lacking a good mobile and multi-channel experience. The survey, which questioned over 500 UK consumers on their opinions of marketing in the UK, confirmed that 83 per cent of them believe there is a lack of ‘mobile experience’ available to them when they search and buy and would in fact move away from brands that can’t deliver the right experience on mobile.

As marketers strive to be with consumers wherever they are, mobile is the obvious choice and strongest channel to do this. In fact, the survey also showed that almost 80 per cent (79%) of respondents would be more likely to buy from a brand if they can offer a good customer experience on all relevant channels.

But it seems that getting the creative marketing right on multiple channels is still a huge challenge to brands, and bad mobile marketing is in fact pushing potential customers away.

David Eldridge, CEO at 3radical, commented: “Mobile should be central to every marketer’s strategy. The brutal truth is that behaviour has changed and the industry must stop treating it as a nice to have, instead focusing on it as the most important channel to reach. The ubiquitous nature of mobile means that it’s the best way to target an audience that is constantly on the move. The technology that is enabled with mobile devices, including location and social for example, means you can do so much and in a more authentic, useful way.”

He continued: “The most successful mobile campaigns are those that help to develop more of an emotional connection with the brand rather than a transactional one, by creating interesting ways to interact across the customer journey and therefore offering plenty of ways to re-engage with them multiple times.”

Emily Collins, Senior Analyst at Forrester, wrote¹: “Today, consumers rely on their mobile phones and tablets as information, entertainment, shopping, and life companions. They expect they can get what they want in their immediate context and moments of need. With this mobile mind shift also comes increased expectations of how and when companies serve and retain consumers. Loyalty marketers and B2C marketing pros that view mobile as just another communication channel squander a critical opportunity to reach, recognize, engage, and enhance experiences for loyal customers wherever they choose to interact.”

Personalisation is important to consumers, but brands aren’t getting it right
Personalisation was also a big theme that came out of the consumer research. When asked how they wanted to be marketed to, the four most popular responses were: personalisation, multi-channel, rewarding and easy to navigate.

But the lack of individual customer marketing is leading to major customer losses. Although a major buzz phrase amongst the world of marketing for the last 18 months, the reality is that ‘personalisation’ isn’t resonating with the majority of marketers and many brands still fail to target customers according to their personal shopping or lifestyle preferences.

When the nationwide survey dug deeper to ask Brits what would encourage them to be more brand-loyal, respondents were clear in their feedback: they want more personalised and interactive loyalty schemes that encompass more of their relationship with the brand. Brands that fail to follow this rule will ultimately lose their custom.

Loyalty & reward schemes come up trumps every time
Loyalty schemes have been one of the huge marketing successes of British commerce in the last decade. The recent study from 3radical also found that 93% of Brits have at some point signed up to be a member of a loyalty programme. Alongside this, where they find a scheme they like, three quarters of respondents (75%) reported being an active member for more than 12 months.

However, many schemes are not as actively used as brands would like. Despite almost a third of all UK consumers having five or more loyalty cards, almost two-thirds of those surveyed (61%) will stick to using only one or two of their favourite schemes on a regular basis.

Three quarters (76%) of respondents said that loyalty programmes would be more attractive to them if they provided individuals with more relevant rewards based on their purchase history. Over half (59%) said that including the ability for them to earn rewards for activities leading up to a purchase, such as researching the brands products, and providing more information to help the brand be more relevant, would make the scheme more attractive.